The Brompton, William ButlerAdams
The Brompton, William ButlerAdams
List: $19.99 | Sale: $13.99
Club: $9.99

The Brompton
Engineering for Change

Author: William Butler-Adams, Dan Davies

Narrator: Julian Elfer

Unabridged: 6 hr 41 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 05/16/2023


Synopsis

Lightweight, compact, distinctively styled, and now, electric: The Brompton isn't the only folding bicycle—or even the first. But everyone who has been on one will enthusiastically testify to its marvelous design (virtually unchanged over decades) and the particular joy of riding it.

Will Butler-Adams, CEO of Brompton Bicycles, has been at the company for twenty years. Initially, he worked as an engineer for Andrew Ritchie, the bike's brilliant inventor and the business's founder, before taking the helm in 2008. Butler-Adams's heartfelt mission is to grow and promote sustainable urban transportation and to improve city-dwellers' lives everywhere.

Under his leadership, Brompton has grown from making a few hundred bikes a year to over 90,000, with revenue of $130 million. But progress hasn't always been easy: There have been boardroom struggles, supply-chain problems, and conflicts with founder Andrew Ritchie. In The Brompton, Butler-Adams brings to life what it means to grow a company to global scale. He also tells the stories of the people who make the Brompton and the people who ride it. And he explains how customers all around the world fell in love with a brand that never set out to be a brand.

About William Butler-Adams

Will Butler-Adams is a chartered engineer and CEO of Brompton Bicycle Limited. He was appointed Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 2015 and has been featured in multiple publications, including the Financial Times. He has also delivered talks for Google and PricewaterhouseCoopers. He lives with his family in London.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Tim

Love my Brompton and great to read about a company that cares about it's employees and purpose as well as the quality and durability of the product. Brief but wild take from the CEO was that we should not be investing in public transit but rather divert those funds to cycling infrastructure. Essenti......more

Goodreads review by Nicky

I'm officially a Brompton nerd.......more

One of my kids bought a Brompton bike. It took a while to arrive but it was well worth the wait. I was amazed by its incredibly intricate,clever, puzzle like, design. Take a look at the cover to get an idea of what I mean. This bike folds in the most ingenious and useful way. When the opportunity cam......more

Goodreads review by David

Now I understand. A truly wonderful book of the company history and evolution by the CEO Will Butler-Adams. As an engineer with a long career as a leader in software for businesses, it was both familiar to me and also a radical & refreshing departure. I was already in the cult ever since buying my B......more